Creamy Artichoke and Charred Scallion Pasta
Updated June 22, 2025
- Total Time
- 30 minutes
- Prep Time
- 5 minutes
- Cook Time
- 25 minutes
- Rating
- Comments
- Read comments
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Ingredients
- 50scallions (6 or so bunches), root ends trimmed
- 2tablespoons avocado oil, sunflower seed oil or grapeseed oil
- 1pound gemelli, fusilli or other short pasta
- Salt and black pepper
- 2(14-ounce) cans quartered artichoke hearts, drained and halved
- 2lemons, zested and juiced (about ¼ cup juice)
- 1½ cups/6 ounces finely grated Parmesan
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)
813 calories; 20 grams fat; 7 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 5 grams monounsaturated fat; 6 grams polyunsaturated fat; 125 grams carbohydrates; 20 grams dietary fiber; 10 grams sugars; 40 grams protein; 1345 milligrams sodium
Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
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Preparation
- Step 1
Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high.
- Step 2
Heat a large, heavy skillet (preferably cast-iron) over medium-high. Drizzle the scallions with the oil and toss to coat. Add all the scallions to the skillet and weigh them down using a grill press or smaller pot to increase surface contact. Cook for 10 minutes, tossing every 3 minutes or so, until the scallions have significantly reduced in volume, softened and developed dark char marks all over. Transfer the charred scallions to a cutting board.
- Step 3
Add the pasta and a big pinch of salt to the boiling water, and cook until al dente, which is often about 3 minutes less than what the packaging calls for.
- Step 4
While the pasta cooks, coarsely chop the cooled scallions.
- Step 5
Reserve 2 cups of pasta water and drain the pasta. Transfer the drained pasta to the pot and season with a few cracks of pepper.
- Step 6
Stir in the scallions, artichokes, lemon zest and lemon juice. Sprinkle with the Parmesan, drizzle with 1 cup pasta water, then vigorously stir over medium heat until the sauce becomes glossy and creamy. Add more pasta water and salt, if needed, and serve right away.
Private Notes
Comments
This was a huge hit with my scallion loving friends! A tip I recommend: use kitchen scissors to cut the scallions! The cooled scallions were slipping all over the cutting board when I used a knife and the scissors were much easier and more effective.
@FH Cyclist not making the recipe as directed AT ALL and then calling it mediocre is so funny and silly
Thoroughly enjoyed this dish. The charred scallions combined with the brightness of the artichokes and lemon was delicious. Already looking forward to having the leftovers tomorrow night!
Added some chili flakes, which I like as a contrast to the lemon flavor. Yummy. Next time I'll add some dried tomatoes as someone suggested.
I found it much easier to chop up the scallions before cooking them in a cast iron pan on the stove.
This is not one of those “forgiving” recipes. Don’t add too much oil or it will be soggy. Don’t use large scallions (even if they are fresh and gorgeous) because they are too large and stiff to fit in the pan and char properly. Do take the advice of cutting the scallions with scissors. Don’t zest too deep into the lemon rind or it’s just bitter. Don’t accidentally discard the pasta water - regular water won’t work to make creamy sauce. Do take the advice of blending the pasta water separately with the Parmesan, which otherwise just forms a big gloppy mess. I’m sorry, I just did every step of this wrong and wasted some nice ingredients. It was my first failure on a NYT recipe, and I don’t have the heart to try it again. The neighbor’s chickens did enjoy it.